Tuesday, October 7, 2014

gettin' buggy with it

Creepy, crawly, cool or yucky, bugs are one thing you can count on being interesting to kids. Which is when we were deciding on topics for our science series this summer, bugs couldn't be ignored.

Our program started as it always does: us telling bad jokes while we wait for the kids to get there. We always ask the kids to contribute, and they come up with some great ones!

"What letter can hurt you if you get to close? B."

"What do you call a fly without wings? A walk."

Once we got everyone sat down, we asked them to build a bug out of the templates we had provided (which you can download for your own use HERE.) While they were building we were given the chance to talk to them about how bugs are put together, how many legs they have, if the size of the wing matters, if the color matters. It was a great way to teach about insect anatomy. And the bugs they came up with were fantastic! A few even made their pictures 3d!

After everyone had gotten their bugs together, we gave them all bug catchers and a magnifying glass (both from Oriental Trading) and sent them on a hunt. Since the tongs have air holes, most of the kids were able to examine the bugs and then let them go, no harm done. We found a lot of spiders, but not a lot of flying bugs. I'd like to do this program again in s different season and see if they get different bugs!

After a half hour if hunting, we brought them in for an "ants on a picnic" snack. Graham crackers with icing and raisins. Yum!

If we did this again: I'd keep a graph of what kind of bugs they found. Disguise the math lesson as a contest, and they won't even know they're doing it!